#lee!wanda

Ned brushed off his help, but continued shoving things away. “Aww thanks Peter.” He picked up a notebook paper that had floated down to the floor somehow. “You'd make such a good girlfriend,” he said, then frozen with the paper still between his fingers.

Peter gently pried it from his hands, sliding it into his backpack, sensing that all of the tests were starting to get to him. “Was that what you meant to say?”

Ned finally dethawed, going back to the task at hand. “We’re not acknowledging it.”

Peter chortled, fighting back a comment about the blush on his face. “Yes we are.”

Ned pointed a finger at him. “Not if you still want your christmas present.”

Peter mimicked zipping his lips, not wanting to risk losing his gift. He didn’t have to use his spidey senses to guess what it was. Ned had been dropping quote unquote hints to him about his present all week, and Peter had figured out it was legos by Wednesday.

He filed the last of Ned’s papers away, which was less of putting papers in folders, and mostly a lot of shoving. Peter didn’t even know how he managed to collect this many papers in the first place.

“You aren’t going to be able to find any of your papers when we come back from break,” Peter remarked, picking up a broken folder that was nearly split in half with all the papers inside of it.

Ned shrugged. “I’ll just throw out anything I don’t need when January comes.”

“Then get a new folder for the semester so you can break it by summer?” Peter asked, fighting back a grin. He knew he was pushing his luck with his christmas gift on the line, but Peter had a gift for him as well, and he wasn’t afraid to bargain his way back into Ned’s good graces.

“Exactly,” Ned nodded. “See, I’m glad you get it.”

Peter rolled his eyes.

“By Mr. Smith!” Peter called, waving to his teacher as they walked out the door.

“Bye boys, stay safe over break. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” He said, closing the door on them on their way out.

The hallways were a mess of hustle and bustle, everyone eager to escape the building as fast as possible. With the thought of finals erased from their minds, and their warm beds waiting for them at home to catch up on some overdue sleep, no one was wasting another minute in that dreadful building.

Peter tapped the top of the frame as Ned and him pushed through the doors, letting the cold New York winter air blow into the hallways, sending Christmas lights fluttering in the breeze.

“My gift?” Peter asked, once they were outside and away from the entrance.

“I want mine first,” Ned said.

Peter cocked his head at him, a coy smile playing at his lips. “How’d you know I bought you one?”

Ned deadpanned. “Oh come on Peter, we do the same thing every year. We give each other gifts on the last day of school before break.”

Peter dropped the act. “Fine.”

He reached into his backpack and pulled out a small box covered messily in red candy cane wrapping. As he handed it to Ned he realized he’d missed a spot, and he hoped he didn’t notice.

Luckily, Ned tore it open as fast as he always did, barely noticing the wrapping before he immediately threw it away.

“Do you know what it is?” Peter asked, as Ned continued staring at it without saying anything.

Ned’s brows furrowed. “I don’t think so.”

Peter tapped on the clear box. “It’s a Palladium core I encased in resin.”

Ned’s eyes went wide. “No, it’s not-” he trailed off, but Peter nodded.

“Look at the front of it.”

Ned flipped it around and gasped, holding a hand to his mouth. “You got it signed by him?”

Peter smiled. “Yup. This is one of the ones that was inside him,” Peter stopped, holding up a finger. “Wait, not like that.”

Ned grabbed him by the shoulders. “Who cares! Peter! This is the best gift ever!”

Peter grinned even wider as his friend shook him rather aggressively, the zippers on his backpack clanging with the movement. It really hadn’t been that difficult to come by, Tony had just had to replace his, and when Peter asked about it, Tony had happily complied.

He thought it was a little weird at first, but he had just said, “kids these days” then scoffed and walked off, leaving Peter with the core.

Ned stopped shaking him, a frown overtaking his face. “Aww, but all I got you was legos.”

Peter’s face lit up at the mention. “No, are you kidding me? I’m about to get a bunch of sciency stuff from the avengers, all I want are some legos.”

“Alright, fine,” Ned groaned, handing him a bright gift bag.

Peter took it and ripped all of the tissue paper out of the bag. “Yes!” he cheered. “All I needed was the hulk to complete my set.”

Ned raised a brow. “Do the avengers ever find it weird that you collect lego figurines of them?”

Peter felt his cheeks warm. “I wouldn’t know, I’ve never told them.”

“Heard,” Ned nodded.

“Alright, see you in a few days?” Ned asked, bumping his fist against his.

Peter finished the handshake. “Yep, I’ll see you then.”

Usually the two would walk home on the last day, but this year was different. As the snow began to lightly fall over the city, Peter was headed towards the avengers tower for a few days.

Aunt May had won some sort of radio contest back in November to go on a Christmas cruise for five days. She was overjoyed, until she found out she had only been given a ticket for one person. The last thing she wanted to do was leave him alone for Christmas, stating that she would rather work double shifts at the community center for two weeks than ever even think about leaving him by himself in New York. Peter was grateful she didn’t know about his nightly patrols, fearful that she might very well have a heart attack, but he needed to come up with some way to convince her to go anyway. Peter knew she needed a break, but after almost a month of trying to reassure her he’d be fine, even he was starting to run out of ways to convince her.

Peter was ranting about it to Tony one day in the lab, and he’d offered him up a solution on a silver platter.

Apparently, as long as he was staying with the Earth’s mightiest heroes, May was willing to let him stay in New York without her. He’d still had to assure her a dozen times that he would be fine with her leaving him on christmas, but they’d managed to pull it off. Just before school that day, she’d left for the airport with her bags. She’d placed a kiss on his cheek, told him to have fun, and to text lots of pictures. She added on as she stood in the doorframe, that she wanted him to be good for Tony. Peter fought the urge to laugh, considering it would be more fitting if she told Tony to behave himself.

He’d heard rumors of Tony Stark’s infamous Christmas parties, and had been fighting the urge to ask him if he’d be invited for the last week.

The walk passed by faster than it usually did, his mind buzzing with thoughts of what he could get up to for the next five days. As he approached the tower, he looked up at the full height of it. The A was already accumulating a fair amount of snow on top of it as the gray skies above it seemed to swirl around the building.

Peter heaved in a breath before he rang the doorbell. There would be more heroes in the tower than he was used to for the next few days. Tony was inviting all kinds of people from all corners of the universe for the week. He’d already met so many of his heroes, and now he had the potential to interact with even more.He’d tried to tease it out of Tony, but he’d only held a finger to his lips and told him he’d find out eventually. However, here Peter was, and the day was finally here.

At last, he gathered up the courage to actually ring the bell, and he listened intently to the sound echoing through the first few levels of the tower.

It was always a mystery who would open the door for him at the Avengers tower. More often than not, it was Happy or Pepper, but occasionally he would get one of the other’s.

Today, he was surprised to be met with no one. The door unlocked on its own, and it just swung open, seemingly on a stray breeze. Peter walked in cautiously, his footsteps light, but nothing seemed glaringly wrong except for the mysterious door. He quietly hung his bag on the hanger Tony had drilled into the wall, and began tip toeing into the living room.

He turned the corner, peeking out from behind the door frame when he spotted Wanda, and another woman he didn’t recognize.

“Oh, hi Peter!” Wanda called. “The other’s are upstairs in various places.”

“Oh, thanks for letting me in,” he said, staying a distance away from them. They seemed to be in the middle of something before he walked in, the other person on the couch blushing furiously.

Wanda stood, placing her glass of wine on the table beside her. “Oh, I almost forgot, Spider-man this is Tele, Tele this Spider-man.” Wanda turned back to Tele. “Or I guess I should specify, this is our world's Spider-man. God, that’s going to get difficult when everyone gets here.”

At Wanda’s words, Peter’s memory came flooding back to him. “Ohhh, your Peter three’s friend.”

They nodded. “Well it’s nice to officially meet you, but Tony said I should meet him up in the lab when I get here, so I should probably go.”

“Go,” Wanda waved. “We’ll have plenty of time to catch up in the next couple days.”

Peter hoped she was right, he’d been wondering if she’d be in the tower just yet. He had heard she’d been sent on a mission with Tele, Peter three, and Natasha, and he had a lot of questions for her. The occupants of the tower didn’t always notice it, but they had a tendency of telling him things he shouldn’t necessarily know. Not that Peter was complaining, but it was funny how all of their spy training and stoic personalities all softened when they were comfortable around each other.

Peter stepped into one of the elevators and pressed the twelfth floor. It smoothly rode up the line to his floor and when the doors opened, his eyes widened at the winter wonderland in front of him.

It was like he was stepping into santa’s workshop. The billionaire had strung up garland anywhere he could without making it a fire hazard, and there were so many fairy lights strung from the ceiling that the brightness replaced the glow of the regular lab lights.

Peter walked around, taking it all in.

Stockings hung from each large piece of equipment, their names listed on each of them in glitter glue that looked like Morgan had helped. The green and red iron man suit was on display in the middle of the lab, and each of the center poles in the room were wrapped to look like candy canes.

“You like it?” Tony called from the back, his voice echoing a little with all the metal in the room.

Peter spun around, trying to observe all of it in as big of a quantity as he could. “LIke it? I think Santa Claus threw up in here.”

“That better be a compliment Parker, you know I’m not afraid to flip you to the naughty list and take away your presents.” Peter laughed, hearing the teasing in his tone. It was always a challenge when he arrived in the lab to find Tony. Some days he thought the man was purposely making a game of it, but today he found him behind a few monitors with ease.

Peter looked at the screen, leaning over Tony’s desk to look at what he’d been working on. “Funny, you’re not the first person to tell me that today.”

“Well, maybe that means you deserve it,” Tony said, tweaking his ribs.

“Hey!” Peter squeaked, puberty immediately leaving his voice.

“Hey is for horses, what’s it doing in your mouth?” Tony remarked without taking his eyes off of the monitor. Peter backed up, making sure to keep his arms close to his sides.

“What’d you call me up for? What are we working on today?” he asked eagerly.

Tony spun around towards him, looking up at him. “You, my sticky friend, are not working on anything for the next five days.”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter groaned. He could work on so many upgrades with all the time he was going to have in the tower. With no school, and no Aunt May, he had nothing stopping him.

Tony held his hands up. “No, I don’t want to hear a whining. I signed on to house a sixteen year old for a few days, not a five year old.”

Peter wanted to say that he was not acting like a five year old, but he feared that would only prove Tony’s point. However, he had never had such an ideal time to work, and he couldn’t give up on the idea that easily. “But I have so many new ideas for my suit.”

“Nope,” Tony said, dramatically popping the ‘p’. “You, my friend, are going to take a few days off, and so am I. There are people being put in place to keep an eye here on earth, and none of those people are you and me.”

“What was the point in decorating the lab then?” Peter asked.

Tony looked at him like the answer to his question was quite obvious, and Peter was reminded of how truly dramatic his mentor was.

Tony patted his back, getting to his feet. “Consider it me paying you back for that time I let you go to space.”

Peter furrowed his brows. “But you didn’t let me? I went without asking.”

Tony slowly turned to him. He stared at Peter for a moment before he started rapidly jabbing his hands into Peter’s midsection wherever he could manage. “Is this really a point you’d like to be arguing five days before Christmas, Parker?”

Peter boyishly giggled as he jumped out of the way. He should’ve known better than to nitpick Tony when he was telling a story. “Noho!”

Tony only followed the teenager, wrapping an arm around him and fluttering his fingers on his neck. “Are you sure?” he teased.

“Yes,” Peter laughed. He lightly pushed him away, taking care to not use too much of his strength considering Tony didn’t even have a suit on.

“Alright, spiderling, I believe you for now. So, are we clear about the rules with lab time?”

Peter couldn’t hide his disappointment, but he shook his head in agreement. “Yes, Mr. Stark.”

“Okay, just a couple other ground rules, and then I’ll let you go.” He clapped his hands together. “We just discussed number one, so you already know no lab time for the next five days, I want you to have some time off. Rule number two, no patrols either, it goes under the time off clause.” Peter groaned, but Tony continued on.

“Rule number three, you have to help Morgan, Pepper, and I wrap gifts because I bought too many gifts for everyone. Rule number four, you need to send your Aunt May an update at least once a day-” Peter started to protest, but Tony held a hand up.

“Ah-ah those are the rules I agreed to for taking you on. If you don’t follow them your Aunt will have my head and yours.”

Peter held his hands up. “I was gonna say that it shouldn’t be a problem because I've already texted her twice today, but okay.”

“Sure you were,” Tony chortled.

“I was!” Peter scoffed.

Tony pushed his reading glasses up on his head. “Well aren’t you nyc’s little golden boy.”

Peter paused, uncertain what to do with the comment. Luckily, Tony moved on from most things pretty quickly.

“Okay, rule number 5, no more calling me Mr. Stark. You are quite literally spending Christmas with me, don’t make it weird. Number six, no shenanigans?”

Peter cocked a brow, and Tony shrugged. “What qualifies as a shenanigan?”

He pointed a finger at him. “Don’t play dumb with me kid.”

Peter gawked at him. “I’m not, what does that mean?”

“Well I don’t want to give you an example, that’ll just give you ideas.”

Peter threw his hands up, and Tony’s facade cracked a little, no longer able to bite down on his smile. “I’m messing with you web slinger, you know I support mischief.”

He pointed a finger at Peter. “Just don’t tell Loki I said that.”

“You have my word, Mr. Stark.”

Tony glared at him and Peter took a preemptive step back. “Sorry, Tony. It’ll take a little getting used to.”

Tony began walking out of the lab, and Peter followed. When Tony came to a sudden stop, so did Peter. “Oh, also, you can come to the Christmas party, but you can’t drink.”

“Oh, come on,” Peter protested.

Tony sighed. “Alright, fine, you can have a singular drink.” Peter began uttering his thanks, and telling him about how responsible he will be, but Tony shushed him. “We’ll pretend we’re in Europe to ease my conscience. You have to promise me you won’t tell your aunt though.”

“I promise,” he agreed, eyes shining. He honestly hadn’t expected to be invited to the christmas party, let alone allowed to drink, and he wouldn’t do anything to make Tony regret it.

“Alright, good,” Tony patted him on the back. “Now be a proper teenager and go bother people or hide in your room, your pick.”

Peter laughed good naturedly, knowing Tony didn’t truly mean it. Or at least, he was fairly sure.

Tony snapped his fingers. “Oh, also if you could bother resident broody and the star spangled banner, that would be the best present you could give me. Truly priceless.”

Peter smiled, heading up the stairs, his footsteps echoing in the empty hallway. “I think I can manage that.”

Tony gave him a thumbs up and they went their separate ways. Peter was surprised he hadn’t received a lecture on gift giving, specifically, on how he should have a lack of it. Last year he had gotten Tony a singular gift for the holidays, just a simple frame of the photo of the two of them, and Tony had given him a gift for ten weeks straight to prove a point. Apparently, billionaires didn’t appreciate teenagers with limited funds using their money on them.

Peter unlocked the door to his room, and jumped on top of his soft duvet. His body went limp, the mattress soaking up every bit of his exhaustion. He sighed contentedly, his eyes fluttering shut. He would just lay here for a little bit, and then he would wander around the tower and visit with everyone else.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Peter woke up bleary eyed and still in his clothes from the day before. He rolled, trying to find where his clock was, and realized there was no more bed underneath him. His stomach lurched as his hands scrambled for purchase. He grabbed his sheets, which slowed his fall. He sighed in relief, still half delirious. He stayed there for a second, still trying to figure out what had happened when the sheets lost their hold.

He landed with a thunk and groaned in pain. Apparently, his spidey senses weren’t awake either. He wiped at his eyes, trying to make sense of everything.

He looked up at the clock on his nightstand and had to rub his eyes and read it again to make sure he was seeing correctly. Peter had woken up at nine am the next day.

He wrestled himself out of his sheets and threw them back on the bed. He cursed his teenage body mixed with a spider bite for needing so much sleep. He had probably already missed so many new arrivals while he was sleeping.

As he pulled out some clothes from his dresser, he realized there were decorations all over his room too. He must not have noticed it when he’d walked in yesterday, but someone had done up his room as well. Garland hung from each of his furniture pieces like icicles from the edge of a house, his rug had been changed out to a fluffy red and green one, and he even had some festive attire that someone had thrown in with the rest of his regular clothes.

He opted to forgo the red and green in terms of clothing for the time being. He was already likely going to be the youngest in every room, and he didn’t need everyone looking at him like a child because he was wearing an elf onesie. Besides, that would only bring more attention to him while he was trying to learn about all of the new people.

He quickly showered and threw on his clothes, absentmindedly pushed his hair back and headed out the door.

He ran down the steps at full speed towards the kitchen as his stomach growled. He couldn’t believe he’d slept so late, he’d make sure to set an alarm tomorrow. It was so stupid of him to sleep for so long.

A door clicked open in front of him, and he stopped just a few inches from where his nose would’ve collided with it.

“Little spider,” Natasha laughed, seeing him as the door shut. “Why are you in such a hurry?”

She continued walking, so Peter followed. “I accidentally fell asleep yesterday afternoon when I got home from school, and I just woke up.”

“Oh trust me, you didn’t miss much.” Natasha waved a hand. “The only person in the tower who doesn’t live here went to bed early, Steve and Bucky went on our last grocery trip till after the holidays, and Wanda made a few pie crusts.”

“I know, but-” Peter started, then stopped himself. Natasha had said he didn’t miss much, but she had been a part of this family for longer than he had. He had never spent a Christmas with the Avengers before, and it all felt so new and exciting to him. This was all old business to Natasha, she’d probably find him quite silly.

“What?” she asked, slowing down.

Peter stopped at the next landing to face her. “No, it’s probably dumb. Nevermind.”

“I’m sure it’s not dumb, come on, tell me. Or if it is dumb, then I will forget I heard anything.”

Peter’s lips twitched. “It’s just.” He sighed, but then decided he’d go for it anyway. “I’ve never been here during the holidays, and I just don’t want to miss any of it. I want to soak it all up, ya know?”

He scratched at the top of his head, but then abruptly put his hand back down, thinking the movement looked weird.

Natasha leaned against the stair railing. “Peter,” she smiled. “I was once new to this team too. I know the feeling of wanting to soak up every moment with this family. But trust me, they aren’t going anywhere, and neither are you.”

Peter smacked himself in the forehead. It had only occurred to him till after Natasha said it but it seemed obvious now. He should’ve known that she would understand. It was so silly of him to think he was the only one who had ever felt like this. Still, he knew Natasha wouldn’t take well to him opening the holiday with apologizing to her, so he moved on. “I know that, it just doesn’t feel like it.”

She placed a hand on his shoulder. “And that’s okay too. It took me a long time to get used to it.” She laughed. “Sometimes I think I’m still getting used to it. But remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint. You’re here for five whole days, don’t run yourself ragged trying to do everything.”

Peter blew a breath out, feeling a little less high strung. “Thanks Natasha.”

She squeezed his arm. “Anytime little spider.”

“Does that mean I can call you big spider?” Peter asked, now following her down the stairs.

She shook her head, chuckling. “I guess so. Just don’t ever say it in front of Clint, or I may have to kill you.”

“Noted.” Peter nodded even though she wasn’t looking at him. He wasn’t certain he would ever be brave enough to call her that to her face, but he saved it away just in case he needed it.

He entered the kitchen, counting four bodies occupying the space, and all sorts of delicious smells wafting around the area.

Natasha leaned in beside him, whispering. “Like I said, pace yourself.”

She walked off, continuing down the steps, and leaving Peter in the chaos. He stood completely still for a moment, unsure of what to do. It almost seemed like they were doing some sort of dance. Pots and pans flew above heads, spoons were passed back and forth, footsteps were carefully made around each other like they had choreographed it all in advance. Peter was worried that if he stepped in, he might throw them off rhythm.

His stomach growled angrily, reminding him that while his bite also made him able to sleep longer, it also meant he needed to eat much more.

“Guys, can I cut into the kitchen to get breakfast?” Peter yelled over simmering liquids and frying meats.

Wanda was the first to turn towards him. “Oh, morning Peter. Can I grab something for you?” She looked at the chaos surrounding her with wide eyes. “I think that would be easier at this point.”

“Yes please, if you could hand me the poptarts, I’ll get out of your hair.”

“Oh, do try the new chocolate flavored ones we got spiderling,” Thor said, turning around, whisk in hand. “They are quite delicious.”

“Yeah, I’ll have those if we’ve got ‘em.” Peter nodded. “Please,” he added on quickly.

Wanda flicked her fingers, and the pop tart box flew out of the cabinet. Peter was about to ask how she managed to direct her power so casually without hitting anyone, but then he realized the box was already in his hand.

“Hey, wait, we don’t just hand out food for free,” Bucky scoffed. “I thought we agreed the kitchen was a no touch zone when there were chefs in it.”

“Bucky, you’re making brownies. Calm down, you aren’t cooking up world peace,” Sam called out from the other side of the kitchen.

Bucky pointed a dirty spatula at him with such aggression that Peter let out a laugh. “That’s what you think, but for all you know, the moment you taste these all your problems could be cured.”

“Not unless your attitude disappears,” Sam guffawed.

Bucky rolled his eyes. “Seriously, Wanda, are you going to let this happen?”

Wanda looked about near her breaking point. “If by this you mean letting the boy eat his breakfast, then yes I do.”

Bucky groaned, and Peter couldn’t help but wonder who the teenager in the room was. “Can we at least make him help us?”

Wanda leaned against the counter, her hands on her hips. “Peter, I am currently dealing with actual children, so would you mind helping Bucky with the brownies when you’re done eating your breakfast? Steve was supposed to help him, but now none of us know where he’s got to.”

Peter nodded, shoving a poptart in his mouth. “Of course, I don’t mind helping.”

Wanda smiled fondly at him. “Thank you.” She covered the side of her mouth like it would prevent the others from hearing her as she fake whispered. “This is why you’re my favorite.”

The others protested, but she paid them no mind as she went back to her food. Peter took a few more minutes eating his fill in pop tarts until he joined Bucky in the kitchen. The sounds of automatic whisks, squeezing bottles, and bowls clanking against one another filled his ears.

“Alright, have you ever made brownies before?” Bucky asked, quite seriously.

Peter narrowed his eyes. “Yeah, who hasn’t? They come in a box.”

Bucky rolled his eyes for the second time in five minutes. “Homemade brownies Peter. Come on, who do you think I am?”

Peter held his hands up innocently. “Wasn’t trying to take away your brownie points.”

Bucky raised a brow. “Was that a pun?”

Peter tensed. “Maybe?”

He could tell Bucky was desperately trying to bite back a smile, and Peter snickered. “Alright, well, homemade brownies are a much more highly involved process.”

“Okay, so what do we need?” Peter asked, pushing his sleeves up to wash his hands.

Bucky listed off the ingredients and Peter rummaged around the kitchen to find them. However, even after five minutes of looking in the fridge, Peter couldn’t find the eggs.

He poked his head out of the fridge. “Guys, I think we’re out of eggs.”

He looked over to see Thor grimacing. “My apologies, between my breakfast this morning, and clarifying the mead, I think I used the last of them.”

Peter brushed him off, now opening the freezer. “That’s fine, we can just use applesauce.”

“No, we cannot!” Bucky protested. “It calls for eggs.”

Sam leaned around Wanda to look at them. “Barnes, have you never heard of a substitute?”

“No, you have to do the recipe exactly as it says, otherwise it won’t turn out.”

Wanda made cuckoo signs around his head, and Bucky whipped around. “What was that?”

“Nothing,” Wanda chirped, going back to whisking. She shot a wink at Peter and it took nearly all of his laughter to not burst out laughing.

Bucky threw his hands up. “What? I’m serious, you should never substitute things. It won’t turn out the same.”

Peter cocked a brow. “Didn’t you grow up during the depression?”

“Are you calling me old?” Bucky asked, his voice lilting.

Peter’s eyes went wide. “No! I mean, wouldn’t it have been common for you to have to substitute things?”

“Yes, which is why it’s not good!” Bucky nearly yelled.

Wanda stirred her soup. “My family had to substitute things all the time, and we were fine.”

Bucky crossed his arms. “And you’re telling me all of them tasted the same?”

Wanda nodded patiently. “Yes, you just have to know what you’re doing.”

Bucky crossed his arms. “Are you saying I don’t know what I’m doing?”

Wanda shrugged. “I mean, you didn’t even know that you should substitute applesauce for eggs. That’s pretty obvious, wouldn’t you agree Peter?”

Peter nodded, knowing better than to be on the opposing team of Wanda, and Tony’s earlier words playing in his mind. Bucky flicked him in the arm. “Ow,” Peter winced.

Wanda continued adding things to her soup as she spoke to Bucky. “It seems to me that this is more of a skill issue.”

Bucky sighed. “Wanda,” he said, his tone warning. Peter kept his eyes on both of them, sensing the rising tension and wondering where it would go.

“What?” she asked innocently, her eyes widened. “I think you might just be bad at baking, it’s alright, not everyone can be good at it.”

“Maximoff, I swear,” he started.

“Barnes, don’t swear in front of the kid!” she gasped, her eyes lighting up with mischief.

“Yeah!” Peter agreed indignantly.

Bucky narrowed his eyes. “He’s sixteen, he curses all the time.”

Wanda propped a hand up on her hip. “Peter, cover your ears, don’t listen to the man with the potty mouth.”

Peter followed her lead, putting his hands up on his head. “Yeah, Bucky, how dare you accuse me of such things!”

Bucky looked done with both of them. “Peter, you say shit about seventy times every time you’re in the lab.”

“How dare you! Peter would never do that!” Wanda said, looking like she was about to burst with how much laughter she was holding back.

“You know what Maximoff?” he said, his lip twitching.

She took a step closer. “What?” she asked, raising her brows. Peter backed up, having the innate sensation that one of them was going to snap and it wasn’t going to go well.

They were both perfectly still for a moment, and then Bucky struck. He grabbed her by the stomach with his metal arm, too quick for her to use her magic against him, and began scratching at her sides.

“Bucky,” she squealed, her legs kicking out at him and continually missing.

Peter did his best to fade into the shadows, suddenly forgetting his alliance. He knew how quickly the tables could turn, and how ruthless Bucky could be. Wanda hit out at his metal arm, her magic getting lost in between her laughter. “Are you going to stop giving me a hard time?” he asked.

“Nohoho,” she giggled, twitching all over the place as his fingers darted across her skin.

“Peter!” Wanda yelped. “Help me!”

Peter hesitated for a moment, but decided it would be in his best interest to keep the scarlet witch on his side.

With a quiet, “thwip!”, he webbed Bucky’s metal arm, pulling it behind his back to give Wanda an escape.

She fell to the floor in a heap of laughter, and Bucky let her go, not bothering to continue torturing her.

Peter was surprised he didn’t put up more of a fight, until he realized Bucky was slowly turning towards him.

“Wait,” Peter said, holding his hands in front of him. He had just poked a sleeping bear.

“Did you just web me?” Bucky asked, watching Peter out of the corner of his eye.

Peter could feel Thor behind him, and Sam watching the whole thing in interest now. All of his senses were suddenly alert, like he was about to go into battle. What all of his systems were currently telling him was that he needed to run, and quickly.

Without answering Bucky’s question, he leapt over the kitchen counter, sprinting towards the steps.

“Oh no you don’t, you pest,” he heard Bucky call after him.

Peter ran full force through the living room, thinking that if he could just make it to the steps and get the door shut behind him, then maybe he could make his escape.

He was a few steps away, just only a few more seconds and he would be free. His hand reached for the door, and he pushed it open. He got a foot in the door when a familiar cold arm wrapped around his middle.

“No!” Peter yelled, grabbing a hold of the door frame. He attempted to pull himself forward, but Bucky merely spidered his fingers in Peter’s armpits and he immediately lost his grip, his arms shooting down to protect himself.

Bucky threw him over his shoulder with an ease that Peter wasn’t used to.

“That’s not fair,” he protested. He tried to wiggle out of Bucky’s arms, but there was no give.

“No, what’s not fair is that you all get to act like little shits, and annoy me without any repercussions,” Bucky said, walking towards the couch.

Peter began to panic, squirming around like a bug caught in a web. He knew the moment that Bucky had him pinned he was done for.

“Bucky! Wait! We promise we won’t bother you anymore!” Peter said as a last ditch effort.

“You promise?” Bucky asked, standing directly over the couch.

“Promise.” Peter said, earnestly.

Bucky paused, beginning to set Peter down. Peter blew out a sigh of relief, then, Bucky reversed his direction and threw Peter forward onto the couch. “Too bad, I want my fun now.”

He jumped on top of him, pinning his arms above his head, and sitting on his thighs.

“Bucky, Bucky, wait!”” Peter called, nervous giggles already leaking out of him.

“Wait for what?” Bucky asked, his metal arm hovering over Peter’s stomach.

“Wanda, hELP!” Peter squealed, but was cut off as Bucky’s hand began fluttering everywhere he could reach.

“Just because you can’t bake, doesn’t mean you need to take it out on the rest of us!” Peter giggled.

“You know, I was going to take it easy on you since you just finished finals, but nevermind,” Bucky huffed. He began squeezing Peter’s ribs, softly brushing his thumb into each one.

“I take it back!” Peter wheezed, descending into frenzied cackles. It was a cruel move, targeting his ribs like that. It always sent Peter reeling, his body not knowing what to do with all of the sensations his skin was taking in, and Bucky was especially good at making him shriek.

“Oh, do you now?” Bucky teased, a terrifying smirk on his face.

“Yes!” Peter tugged at his arms in vain. It was no use, with Bucky at his full strength, and Peter weakened by his laughter, he couldn’t overpower him very easily. Still, that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try.

“Wanda save me!” he yelled, deciding it was in his best interest to rely on someone else’s power.

Peter faintly heard the sound of a door clicking open and prayed it was Tony. He also had a tendency of tickling him, but at least maybe he would accidentally distract Bucky long enough that he could escape.

To his horror though, the worst possible person had shown up. “What’d he do this time, Buck?” Steve asked, sounding unsurprised.

“Be a little shit like usual,” Bucky shrugged.

Steve came out of his peripheral vision, and walked in front of him, briefly wiggling his fingers over his socked feet. “STEVE!” Peter yelled, kicking out as much as he could with Bucky’s weight on his legs.

“Wow, I always forget how ticklish you are,” Steve tutted, removing his hand.

“Not helping!”

Bucky tasered his sides with his fingers. “He’s not trying to, he’s on my side unlike you other assholes.”

“Wanda!” Peter tried again, sensing the team up that was about to happen.

Bucky looked up at Steve, not stopping his attack on Peter while he did. “Oh yeah, Steve, would you mind going to deal with the red head over there?”

“What did she do?” Steve asked as if there wasn’t a teenager dying of laughter right beside them.

Bucky gestured down towards him, and Peter’s face lit up red. Something about being destroyed by laughter while they held a casual conversation made the sensations so much worse. “Same as Peter.”

Steve nodded. “Ah, I see.” He began walking towards her, and though Peter knew it would only further nail his coffin shut, he yelled over at her.

“Wanda save yourself!”

Bucky cocked his head, momentarily pausing. “You really don’t give up do you?”

Peter shook his head. “Friendly neighborhood spiderman.” He smiled sheepishly.

Bucky positioned his hands atop Peter’s ribs. “Well spiderman, you are far too ticklish to be this risky.”

Peter shrugged, his eyes alight with mirth. “At least I can bake.”

Bucky deadpanned, his fingers wrapping around the backs of Peter’s ribcage. “Okay, now you’re just asking for it.”

Bucky attacked, and Peter immediately fell back into his laughter. Loud cackles burst from his mouth as Bucky squeezed higher up on his ribs.

“Peter, oh my god, stay still, I’m trying to count all of your ribs.”

“Nohoh!” Peter squealed, having played this game with Tony too many times.

“Well now we’re going to have to start all over again,” Bucky huffed, squeezing each rib from the bottom to the top. Peter was going berserk, having one of his worst spots targeted for so long. He briefly opened his eyes and saw Wanda being thrown on the couch next to him. Steve didn’t give her a chance to escape and went straight for her neck.

He screeched as Bucky reached the tops of his ribs again, praying he wouldn’t start the process all over again. However, it was only when he felt Bucky’s fingers climbing higher still that he began to panic.

“Bucky, don’t you dare!”

Bucky paused for a moment, and Peter heaved in deep breaths while he was still able to. “Oh.” Bucky leaned in, smirking in a way that Peter knew that no amount of pleading would convince him to move anywhere else.

“I dare,” he hissed, then jammed his fingers into Peter’s armpits. Peter didn’t make any noise for a moment. He dug his heels into the couch, trying to find the leverage to throw Bucky off of him, he twisted around from side to side, trying to dislodge Bucky’s fingers. He would almost get adjusted to one side, then Bucky would start tickling his other armpit. However, his body was only able to contain the noise so long, and he burst into a scream.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Peter panickedly squeaked.

Bucky turned towards the other couch. “See, Wanda? I told you he curses.”

Peter could just barely hear her screams of laughter above his own, but he could’ve sworn she told him to shut up.

“Now,” Bucky said, turning his attention back to him. “If we can just manage to convince you I can bake.”

Peter was writhing on the couch, his laughter beginning to make his abdomen hurt. Though, he was admittedly not fighting as hard as he could. “You can’t though!” he yelled out.

“Okay, seriously, does anything tire you out?” Bucky said, momentarily pausing his hands.

Peter shook his head, his hair sticking to his forehead with sweat. “You’re maybe the only person I know who’s as stubborn as that guy back there,” Bucky teased, pointing to Steve, who was currently making light work of Wanda’s giggles.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Peter smiled, heaving in air.

“It is one,” he smiled. He ruffled Peter’s hair gently, which Peter doubted he’d attempt if he wasn’t currently pinned underneath him. “However,” Bucky started, sitting upright. “Just like him, it’ll get you tickled a lot.”

Bucky released his arms, and Peter’s brows furrowed. He started to sit up, but Bucky had yet to get off of him. Without taking his weight off of him, he adjusted himself so he was still sitting on Peter’s legs, except he was facing the other way.

Suddenly, Peter’s face went white. “Wait, Bucky please no.”

“Can I bake, Parker?” he asked, without looking at him.

Peter sighed, laying back down so he could save some of his energy. “No,” he answered plainly.

“That’s what I thought,” Bucky sighed.

Bucky didn’t make Peter wait any longer for his payback and all ten of his fingers began dusting across his socked soles. Peter was sent into immediate hysterics. He gave up trying to plead with him, but he couldn’t stop his body from rolling around the couch as continual giggles poured from his mouth. Every so often he would snort if Bucky got him with a particularly good method, or if he would stray upwards to his toes, but Bucky continued until Peter got all of the laughter out of him.

However, once the tears started to prick at the corners of his eyes, he let up. “Have you learned anything today?” he asked, getting up and sitting next to him. Peter stayed laying down, catching his breath. He noticed that someone must have lit the fire because he could hear something crackling.

“Not much,” he breathed out.

“I figured.” Bucky patted his knee. “But I’m always happy to teach you again.”

Peter jumped up from the couch, nearly taking his shin out on the coffee table, and Bucky laughed. “Not now, I’m not cruel.”

Peter raised his brows. “Okay, I’m not that cruel,” Bucky deadpanned. Peter glared at him, though he knew he didn’t really mean it.

He sat back down next to him. “You deserve payback for that.”

Bucky bumped his shoulder against him. “I don’t think so, I didn’t start it.”

A red light flashed through the living room. “I would beg to disagree.”

Peter and Bucky turned to see Steve on the ground. “Peter, care to join me?” Wanda asked, grinning.

Bucky attempted to run, but all it took was one flick from Wanda’s wrist and he was on the ground.

“Sam help!” Bucky yelled. Sam started running towards him, but abruptly came to a stop.

Wanda held an orb of dark red power in her hand, eyeing him carefully.

He held his hands up, walking backwards towards the kitchen. “No, thank you.” He grabbed a hold of a bowl. “Someone’s gotta keep stirring your soup.”

Wanda smiled, her nose scrunching up.

“Care to humble some super soldiers for the holidays?” Wanda asked. She twisted her magic and Steve burst into bright giggles.

Peter always knew it was best to keep the scarlet witch on his side. “Absolutely,” he agreed.

The tower was filled with laughter for quite some time, and lots of threats were said with no real violence behind them. When all was said and done, Peter was absolutely certain he was in for a very interesting winter break with his family.

Having been married for over 10,000 years, they often received questions like, 'How have you not gotten tired of eachother yet?'

The truth was they couldn't get enough of each other. 10,000 years and yet sometimes it still felt like their wedding was only a few months ago.

That wasn't to say they never got on each other's nerves. Nobody was that perfect, but it was never enough to cause any real problems. And even the few problems they had had, they always worked out quickly before it had a chance to fester or grow worse.

Even Cupid had mentioned their paring was probably his best work yet.

Cosmo glanced up from the cups of coffee he was making to look at his wife. Soft round face, beautiful large pink wings with shimmering gold edges.. An uncommon trait among fairies that she had been blessed with. He loved seeing her wings in the sun or moonlight- When had she suddenly gotten closer?

"Yes, my love?" He mused, turning his head to glance down at her over his shoulder. He didn't miss the way her pink eyes seemed to light up each time he called her that.

She didn't bother responding. She simply just parted his forest green wings to the sides, and wrapped her arms around him from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder. Though he couldn't read her mind, by the way she was looking at him, it appeared she was admiring him back.

He smiled at the sight. "I'm almost done with your coffEEHEEHEE!" He arched his back dramatically and dropped the spoon into the mug, quickly pulling his hands back so he didn't accidentally knock the mugs over.

He turned his head against and shot her a playful glare, which she returned with a grin, her fingers still curled against his ribs.

"Betrayed by my own wife- I thought you were coming over here to be sweet, but you only came over here to be a menace." He said, trying to act hurt, though the way his wings parted just slightly more told a different story.

And she knew he didn't really mind. Married for over 10,000 years, and you learn what your partner likes and dislikes. You actually learn these things within the first couple years of a relationship. But the point still stands: She knew her husband very well.

A beat of silence passed between them before he started to chuckle again, though she hadn't started tickling yet. He was flustered.

She watched as a beautifully bright blush started at the bridge of his nose, spread across his cheekbones, and up to the tips of his pointed ears, which she just had to lean up to kiss. It was law.

"Wahanda, my dearest-" He started, but she just curled her fingers into the soft spaces between his ribs once more, causing him to snort and grin, his hands coming up to gently grab hers, yet not pushing away. "Ihit's ehearly, we hahaven't even hahad coffee yehet-" his knees almost gave out as she started to scratch his lowest ribs.

Cosmo wheezed, flustered and suddenly giddy. His wings twitched and trembled as his nerves seemed to spark and light up all over his body while his wife tickled him. It wasn't until she started to gently work her fingers into his underarms that he fully started to laugh and slip down to the floor, his legs giving out.

"HAHAHAHA DEHEHEAR! WAHANDA PLEHEASE!"

She followed him down to the floor until he was on his back, his head in her lap, giggling and panting while she just cupped his face and looked at him with all the love in the world. She brushed her thumbs over his red, pointed ears, making him jump a little and finally reach up, snatching her hands in his.

He caught his breath and sat up, still firmly holding her mischievous hands in his. "You've been awfully playful and clingy lately, Gorgeous," he started, "Interrupting me while I read," his grip tightened on her hands, "Holding onto my arm if I'm just heading into the other room.." he pulled her into his lap, causing her wings to flap a little out of surprise, the kitchen lights catching the golden edges just right for a second before she folded them back down.

Though despite his tone being playful, he caught a hint of insecurity in her eyes. One he knew and had dealt with many times. So he softened his tone and wrapped his arms around her. "And I could never get tired of you." He finished.

For the first time that morning, she actually spoke, "If you want me to dial it back a little, I can-" though she had gotten cut off by her own squeaking as he started to rapidly poke his fingers into her sides and wiggle them downward.

"I would never ask you to dial yourself back for my sake. I really don't mind you being so close. I wouldn't have married you if I did." he said, delighting in the way she squealed as his hands found their way to her slightly pudgy tummy. Her legs weakly kicked against the floor and she held onto his wrists as frantic giggles poured out of her.

"Oh is that a bad spot~?" He teased, his voice low, "Did I find your tummy, my dear~?" He chuckled, his lips just barely brushing over her ear as he teased her.

It was her turn to blush now. Though it didn't spread beautifully across her face, the way Cosmo's seemed to gracefully paint across his. She blushed a bright, furious red, all at once, almost as if it exploded across her features and burned brightly just beneath her skin. She had never liked it, but her husband loved it, and sometimes would work in order to see it.

While he tickled and squeezed her tummy, he also decided to nuzzle his face into her neck to pepper a flurry of light kisses against the ticklish skin. She managed out a squeaky, "nohoho!" before she went back to squirming against him and giggling.

It wasn't long before Wanda gently squeezed his hands; a silent form a communication between the two that meant, 'All done.'

Cosmo slowed to a stop, his hands turning into flat palms facing upward before Wanda's slid into place and he held them. He lifted his head to press a sweet kiss to her cheek, and she turned her head to meet him in the middle for a second kiss.

Their coffees cold, and forgotten, they stayed on the kitchen floor together for a little while longer.

-

Ahhh it's so short!! Sorry ^^"

I wanted to add wing tickles in bc if I'm being honest, 'Ticklish extra/ non-human appendages' is probably one of my favorite kinds of tickle media

But I couldn't figure out how to work them in, so maybe in the next fic

You hummed, walking around the couch to stand directly behind the witch. “Mmhmm, right. Do you believe her, Steve?”

Steve looked up from his newspaper, eyeing you, then Wanda, then he shook his head. “No, she’s definitely ticklish.”

“Loki?” You turned your head to the God, watching as he flicked his wrist to make his book disappear into thin air.

“Considering she’s crossing her arms in the same way you do when someone asks you the same question, then I’d say the young witch is unbearably ticklish,” Loki smirked.

Wanda scoffed and uncrossed her arms at the same time you rolled your eyes and felt heat prickle in your cheeks. Still, you shook off that comment and put your attention back onto Wanda.

“Right, so if you don’t mind…” You said prior to poking at her upper ribs. Wanda didn’t make a noise, nor did she move, but her face scrunched up the slightest amount.

“See… t-told you,” Wanda uttered out. You completely ignored her and pinched a little lower, taking notice in how she flinched and pressed her elbows down.

“So, you’re saying that if I tickle you right here…” You dug into Wanda’s sides, “…you wouldn’t laugh?”

Wanda let a tiny giggle slip out, then grabbed at your hands to push them away. “N-No!”

“You can cut the act, Wanda. Just let it happen,” You whispered into your friend’s ear, reaching farther around to prod into her belly.

Wanda’s resolve finally broke; she burst into high-pitched giggles and fell sideways onto the couch. “O-hokay! I’m tihicklish! Are yohou happy nohohow?”

“Very,” You declared matter-of-factly, moving up to her ribs to dig into the spaces between the bones.

Wanda squealed, giggles turning into deep belly laughs. “AHAHA! Ohokahay! I-I’m gohonna get yohou back fohohor this!”

————————————————————————

“Alright Kate Bishop, I’m giving you one more chance to be my partner in crime. Screw this up, or betray me again, and I’ll hang you by your ankles in the gym, got it?” Yelena asked, her voice dead serious as she looked at the archer. “And this time Natasha won’t be there to save you,” She added with a grim smile. Kate gulped and nodded, realizing that Yelena was very serious. She had blown their last attempt of tickling Wanda, she knew that if she blew it again, she’d die.

“You got it,” She nodded. The two of them were currently sitting on Kate’s bed, discussing a new plan to tickle Wanda. Kate had been headed towards her room after walking Lucky, planning on crashing onto her bed. However, she hadn’t expected to be yoinked inside by Yelena, who was already waiting for her there. 

“We definitely know she’s ticklish now, otherwise she wouldn’t have destroyed us like that,” Kate added, earning a glare from her friend. 

“Excuse me, you are the reason I got tickled too,” Yelena said, earning a sheepish grin from the archer. After Yelena’s betrayal, Kate had given Wanda tips on how and where to tickle the blonde, much to her dismay. Of course, Yelena had gone to Kate after Wanda’s visit to have a ‘word’ with her for giving away sensitive information. In the end, the archer had been unable to utter any words between her laughter.

“We’re losing focus! Wanda is our main target now, and we need to figure out how to approach her and surprise her, otherwise she’s just going to overpower us again,” Kate said, causing Yelena to chew on her lower lip. There was a very small chance they would be able to surprise Wanda, especially after their last attempt. However, if there was one thing Yelena was proud of, it was her speed.

“Even if we can’t surprise her, we just need to be faster than her,” The blonde said with a mischievous smirk, sending a shiver down Kate’s back. The archer was very grateful for not being Yelena’s victim for now. 

“And it’s two against one, so we might have a chance!” Kate added with an excited smile, earning a playful eye-roll from Yelena.

“If you’re done being a silly puppy, let’s go,” The blonde smirked, making her friend look at the ground with an embarrassed smile, before nodding. They were going to succeed this time, for sure.

They crept around the compound, looking for Wanda until they, at last, found her in the common room, sitting on the kitchen isle. Both Kate and Yelena immediately froze in the hallway, keeping their distance for now to keep the element of surprise. However, while they could only see her back and part of her face, they could instantly tell that she was leaning forward, her shoulders hanging low. Something was wrong.

“Does she… does she seem sad to you too?” Kate questioned, turning to Yelena with a frown on her face. The spy narrowed her eyes, paying close attention to Wanda’s expression. There were no traces of tears on her cheeks, but Yelena could easily tell that Wanda was frowning.

“She’s not crying… maybe she was just thinking about things?” Yelena whispered back, before looking at Kate with big eyes. “This is it! This is our chance, while she’s distracted,” She said. Kate grinned and nodded, looking back at Wanda.

“Besides, if she’s sad, we should cheer her up right?” The archer whispered with a giggle, earning a nod from the blonde. They slowly crept closer to the kitchen isle, paying close attention to Wanda’s movements in case she noticed them. To their surprise, the witch didn’t even move, as if unaware of their presence. Yelena counted down from three on her hand, before the two jumped up simultaneously, wrapping their arms around Wanda’s upper body. The witch let out a squeal at the surprise hug, accidentally sending a blast of energy into the wall, before being pulled backwards on the ground.

“Hey! What gives!” Wanda cried out, clearly caught off guard as she gazed up at Yelena and Kate, a nervous tingle filling her stomach as she noticed their mischievous smiles. The duo wasted no time, with Kate pinning her arms over her head as Yelena straddled her waist, immediately squeezing up and down her sides. Wanda’s eyes shot wide open as she gasped, a stream of giggles immediately leaving her lips.

“Oh hello there crazy witch lady, I told you I’d come for you,” Yelena greeted with a wide smirk, her fingers dancing all over Wanda’s sides and ribs. The witch shrieked and closed her eyes shut, immediately tugging at her arms.

“Nohohohohoho! Nohohoho don’t tickle meehehehehehehhe!” Wanda giggled helplessly from the start, unable to hold back her laughter since they had surprised her.

“No no, your arms are staying right here,” Kate grinned teasingly, lightly wiggling a single nail against each wrist to aid in the tickles. She had recently discovered - thanks to Natasha - how much that actually tickled, and she was dying to test it out on someone else. Wanda’s eyes shot wide open as she arched her back, her feet trying to find a grip on the floor.

“Kaaahahahhate! Yelenaaahahahahahha! Lehehet me uhuhuhuhuhup!” Wanda cried out through her giggles, trying to sound threatening, and failing miserably, while squirming underneath their grip.

“Let you up? But we just started!” The blonde chuckled, clawing her nails against the middle of her stomach. When Wanda let out a loud shriek, Yelena raised an eyebrow with a smirk, adding her second hand to scribble at her bare skin.

“Oh? Does that tickle? Right here?” She playfully mocked, her smile growing wider as Wanda’s laughter increased heavily. Kate let out a yelp as her struggling increased as well, still managing to hold down her arms as she ceased her own tickle attack.

“YELEEHEHEHENAAHAHAHA! DOHOHOHHOHON’T!” The witch shrieked, arching her back again as her legs kicked wildly. She quickly tried to cast a spell, as red energy flared in her hands for a moment, before losing her concentration just as fast.

“Don’t what? Tickle you? Because you’re ticklish?” Yelena teased, copying her sister’s tactics while moving her hands up, her fingers poking between each of her ribs. “And if I remember correctly, you’re very ticklish right… here!” She added, suddenly shoving both hands under Wanda’s arms. The latter let out a deafening squeal of laughter, jerking her arms free from Kate’s hold as she slammed them to her sides while laughing her heart out.

“OHOHOHOHO GAHAHAHAHAD! DAHAHAHAHAMMIT STOHOHOHHOHOP!” Wanda shrieked with laughter, quickly realizing that those fingers wouldn’t stop tickling her, even if they were trapped. She was doomed.

Kate wasted no time, crawling to Wanda’s legs for her own safety, sitting on her thighs to help Yelena pin her down. The blonde continued tickling under Wanda’s arms, causing the witch to roll side to side on the floor, while Kate started to squeeze at her inner thighs. Eventually, Yelena pulled her hands free to squeeze at her hips, drilling her thumbs into her hip bones, while Kate alternated between her thighs and knees. The brunette was sent into hysterics, unable to summon her magic or push them off, as she simply had to take the tickles.

When Wanda fell into silent laughter, the duo stopped at the same time, briefly looking at each other with a nodd. Kate jumped up and made a beeline for her room as Yelena turned back to the poor witch with a wide grin, patting her stomach.

“There there, all settled, bye!” She said, before jumping up to escape as well. Wanda, who was still a giggling mess on the floor, slowly caught her breath while watching them run to safety.

“Oh man… hah… oh they’re dead… oh they’re so dead…” She said to herself, pushing herself up on her elbows. There was no way she was going to leave it at that. Yelena and Kate had declared war against her, and now she had no choice but to win that war. However, as she stood up to go after them, a sudden voice stopped her in her tracks.

“We both know that there’s no way they could have won that easily against you, unless there’s something wrong,”

“Jesus Natasha!” Wanda cried out, immediately spinning around to face the intruder. Natasha smirked widely at brunette, leaning with her shoulder against one of the doorways into the common room. She loved sneaking up on her friends. After all, she was the Black Widow.

“Just Natasha is enough, dear,” She teased, pushing herself off of the wall to make her way to the couch. Wanda shot her a glare yet smiled, automatically relaxing in the Widow’s presence. It showed how much she trusted the older woman.

“How long have you been standing there? And how much of that did you see, actually?” Wanda questioned, walking over to the redhead as she eyed her carefully. Natasha smiled and patted the couch next to her.

“I saw more than enough. Come sit with me,” She urged, making Wanda blink. She could tell that Natasha wanted to talk about something, so she complied and took a seat next to her. There was a short silence before Natasha shifted, now turning to Wanda.

“Like I said… there’s no way they could have sneaked up on you, and there’s no way they would win in a tickle fight against you, on any ordinary day,” She started. “Especially since you knew they were going to try and get you back, and you can read minds. So, that means this is no ordinary day. Are you okay?” Natasha questioned, a more serious tone taking over. Wanda stared at her for a moment, before letting out a deep sigh.

“You just have to be the greatest spy in the world, huh?” The witch rolled her eyes playfully but smiled at her friend. She should have known she couldn’t hide anything from Natasha. Not after all the time they had spent together.

“I do hear that from time to time, yes,” The spy smirked, earning a huff from the brunette. “And I learned how to read you a long time ago. So, what’s bothering you?” She carefully asked. Wanda let out another sigh and looked at the couch.

“I honestly don’t know. I mean, I can’t really put my finger on it,” She explained, looking up at Natasha. “Just… everything I did went wrong for the past couple of days, as if I’m attracting bad luck or something. I guess Karma has finally caught up with me for my past,” She mumbled with a shrug. Natasha frowned and shook her head.

“You can’t think like that,” Natasha gently scolded her, cupping her chin so she could look Wanda in the eyes. “We all have bad days, and when we do, it’s not because we’re paying for our sins or things we did wrong. I used to think like that for a very long time, until Yelena basically knocked it out of me,” The redhead added, making both of them smile a little.

“I don’t know Natasha… sometimes I feel like no matter what I do, they,” She said, moving her head to gesture towards the city. “They’ll always see me as a monster, or an experiment on the run, no matter how many times I try to do good,” She said, her shoulders lowering once again. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up to meet Natasha’s questioning eyes. It only took her a second to realize what Natasha was asking, and a smile instantly appeared on her face as she nodded. Natasha pulled Wanda closer to her, the witch’s back resting against her front as she placed her chin on the young girl’s head.

“We both know you’re so much better than that, Wanda. And no matter how people speak of you, or how they view you, you’ll always be the baby witch that I adore,” The spy concluded with a smile, pressing a kiss against the top of Wanda’s head as she cuddled her. 

A wide smile spread on Wanda’s face at hearing her nickname, immediately remembering their early days when Natasha became her mentor. The redhead had played a major part in Wanda’s life when she was dealing with the loss of her twin, and when she felt lost in life. Natasha had been her anchor, and she had helped her move forward. And over the years, they had become the best of friends.

“And you’ll always be my grumpy old mentor,” She said, looking up at the older woman with a smirk. Natasha playfully raised an eyebrow at her, the hand resting on Wanda’s stomach moving under her shirt to claw at her side. The witch jerked and let out a surprised yelp, immediately trying to jerk away from her as she started to giggle.

“Don’t make me tickle you too, you brat~” Natasha said, smiling widely as she heard those beloved giggles again. “Or do I need to remind you of the fact that you never won a tickle fight against me before? Because you’re too ticklish and I always win?” She teased.

Wanda giggled faster and shook her head, her hand slapping against Natasha’s arm as she leaned into the embrace. 

“No? But Wanda, laughter is the best medicine, right?” The redhead smirked yet stopped tickling her, wrapping her own arms tightly around Wanda’s shoulders.

“I’ll always have your back, and I’m here if you need me,” Natasha promised with a smile, pressing another kiss against the side of her head. Wanda closed her eyes and let out a sigh. However, this time it wasn’t out of disappointment or sadness. It was because she felt safe in her friend’s arms, and for the first time that day something was actually feeling right.

“Thank you, Natasha,”

“What did you say?” *hand starts glowing red* “uh- uh nothing?…”

Her hand starts glowing? She tilts her hand? Run. Run for dear life.

But she’ll be a silly one too, she enjoys having some time off from this chaos

If you try tickle her, she’ll use her powers to pin your arms down

So it’s a one-sided tickle fight most of the time…

But if she’s in the right mood, you’ll get her good by tickling her ribs

She’ll giggle cutely while trying to use her powers, but she fails every time

“You gotta relax, Wanda! Just let it happen!”

You know she’s using her powers whenever she feels threatened or is in danger, it’s a reflex because she isn’t relaxed, so you show her otherwise

And she does enjoys this kind of physical touch

It reminds her of vision and her play fights to gain each other’s trust

But once she gets to tickle you..

Her nails tickle so much, you loose it every time

Since she knows that, she loves scribbling and scratching your sensitive skin

And she only uses her unfair powers when you’re way to squirmy

But even if she doesn’t, she’s mean

Though she has mercy quick